This is very familiar territory for every over 40 guy. We nearly all struggle with joint and tendon pains.
Some of us accept defeat and enter potbelly territory. Well if are you like me, then we refuse to accept even the word “defeat”. It is not in our vocabulary.
But we cannot ignore the aches and pains. So how do we deal with it?
First, the fact is, it IS good, very good, for the over 40 body to be involved in resistance training. That has been proven beyond any doubt by many science studies.
We must just find a way of dealing with the “problem” and not too simply, give up! Dealing with it involves wisdom and quite a few things that we need to do to effectively relief the pain.
Before we start discussing what must be done, remember – NEVER train through pain. You will make whatever the problem is MUCH worse. As you get older you will have to regularly change your exercises and even your whole workout approach and regimen to periodically side-step pains and aches in tendons, joints and back. This is a given. BUT…never, ever, stop training because of pain…adapt and change. Always keep training with what you can do, even if it means a total different temporary training approach.
Joint pain (and tendon pain) is not just simply a result of training heavy. MANY factors play a role.
Let’s go through the list of the things you need to do to relief/avoid tendon/joint pain:
TRAINING
You must have a cutting (lighter weights, higher reps per set) and building (lower reps with higher weights) phase in place to allow regular “rest” periods for the tendons/joints. Phase lengths should be roughly 3 months each.
Consider training lighter for a 6-month to a year period if you struggle with a serious tendon/joint issue.
Very important – never bend your hand upward or downward when lifting, but keep it all times in a straight line with the for-arm. Bending the hand during heavy lifting places undue strain on the elbow via strained tendons. Keeping the hand straight keep all tendons at equal strain.
Bench pressing should be performed with the overhand position with bar resting on the thumb area (bottom) of the palm so that there is no pressure on the wrist. (The place where the bar lies on the hand must be in a straight line with the whole arm to ensure that no strain is on wrist.)
Use special straps to relief strain on the wrist. I will show example in the video. A simple strap fastened around the wrist with a rubber palm grip which can be wrapped around heavy weights. This allows for near zero strain on the wrist joint. This is especially helpful with pull ups, shrugs and nearly all back and upper body exercises.
LIFESTYLE
Yip you guessed it…NO SMOKING! Smoking makes the whole body functioning less optimally. It affects nearly everything in the body from the brain to the skin to the lungs to pains and aches that get much worse because of the smoking.
The same goes for drinking. Light drinking (4 glasses wine per week) is max. But even for some this proves to be too much and result in joint pain. In quite a few cases people had to completely stop drinking alcohol in an attempt to get rid of the joint pains.
Too little sleeping. Your body needs time to heal and repair. Too little sleeping rob it of this time. A good (6-8hrs) night rest will go a long way to help the body function optimally.
EATING
Our eating habits have a much bigger role to play in joint pain than you might think.
Ensure that you drink enough filtered water per day (3L-6L). This helps washing out the toxins from the body. More toxins = more joint pain.
Enough good oils. Apart from the fact that good oils (omega 3 & 6: peanut butter, olive oil, avocado, coconut) are critical for a healthy functioning hormonal system, it is also very important to help ease joint pain. Cutting out all good oils/fat from your diet will aggravate joint pain and result in low testosterone levels.
You must ensure the body is in an alkaline environment with a PH of roughly 7. The more acidic the body gets, the more joint pain will be experienced, full stop. There are enough serious science studies to back this up. There are also many other advantages when you keep the body in an alkaline state. It has been proven to lessen your risk for cancer and supports a stronger immune system amongst others. On the next page there is a list of ALKALINE and ACIDIC foods to help you adjusting your diet. (A good starting point – lemon juice every morning and evening and cutting out wine and fizzy drinks. MANY people have gotten rid of their joints pains by simply changing their diet to a more alkaline one.)
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SUPPLEMENTS (natural)
CQ10 (Co-Enzyme Q10). This has been proven by various science studies to be a potent long term pain combatant. However, as with most natural approaches, this only starts working after more than 1 month of continuous usage. [I take 300mg in morning and 300mg at night.]
Even more potent than CQ10, MSM (METHYLSULPHONYLMETHANE) has helped many people changing their lives. It is not a wonder pill but with long term use can significantly ease joint pain. Effective results only achieved after about 3-4 months of continuous use. [I take 400mg morning and 400mg evening]
The 3rd one, eish…this took me some time to support it’s use – CANNABIS oil. I am old school and anything drug-related, even for medical reasons is pretty much “no-go” territory for me. This one took some serious mind changing for me. Eventually I just could not ignore study after study that supported various benefits of CANNABIS OIL. The oil, which contains a higher ratio CBD to THD, is rather harmless when compared to the psychotropic effects of smoking cannabis. It is the THD that result in all this bad effects and the oil has a CBD/THD blend of about 85/15 in most cases which make it mostly harmless. Even here in South Africa the studies are nearly concluded and it looks like we are mere months away from Cannabis Oil being available over the counter for medical purposes. Apart from lowering blood pressure, combating nausea, helping with sleep and fighting cancer, it is actually a potent pain relief substance. After about 3 weeks use the body reach a saturation point and then the real pain relieving properties kicks in. If you can get past the mind barrier of taking something that is closely drug related then this could have a drastic positive pain relief impact. And believe me it is not so easy getting past this “mind barrier” for us older folks…but it can be done…I took the plunge. The end result for me – less pain and drastic better sleeping at night. Also drastically lower blood pressure. [I take 1 drop morning, 1 drop afternoon and 5 drops before bed]. Cannabis oil (CBD/THD) has some very interesting medical applications. Some of the claims the cannabis groupies make is not backed up at all by science but some actually are, especially with the latest studies. I think this warrant a future article to give some more insight into this new emerging product (emerging…well at least in the medical mainstream community that is!).
MEDICATION
This is a territory you want to avoid. Yes, you can take anti-inflammatory meds, but this is hard on kidneys/liver/stomach and definitely NOT a long term solution.
The last resort and sometimes a necessary route is arthritis medication. There are various types depending on the severity and type of arthritis. A well know anabolic steroid, Deca-Durabolin, is known for its anti-arthritis / joint pain properties. But only your health care provider can do the necessary blood test to determine the problem and plan of action.
However most of the time if you take the points above about training, lifestyle, diet and supplementation seriously enough then you can have pain free over 40+ workouts.
This one is NOT for my followers/friends but for those, well, that simply does not like me. So friends and followers…skip this one! But you, yes you (!), read/watch this…
Now why would I even bother talking to my haters?
Well, it is not about what they say (that is water of my back), it is about the intensity of hate they show that bugs me.
I find it difficult to comprehend just how dark a person’s heart must be to utter such intense hate to someone they know nothing about. Call me naïve but for me one must always act with the same moral and integrity rules which you apply in life, whether you are on internet or whether you physically talk to a person standing next to you.
My blocked list on youtube is challenging my subscribers list.
If you look at every article I wrote, every comment I made, every video I’ve made then you would very quickly see I adhere to 3 things:
I show every person the same respect I want them to show me
Integrity is extremely important to me
My moral conduct is guided by the one I follow – Jesus Christ.
So the fact that so many people have a distinct dislike in me, well, I reckon that is a sad sign of the times. It seems this is the way the world is today…hate is increasing for those that show respectful behaviour and integrity. The bad is becoming good in the eyes of the world and the good is becoming bad…
Now my rule is simple – If you don’t show basic common decency with your comments, sorry, you will be blocked. I never waste my time in responding to negative or destructive comments. I focus on the positive and uplifting in life.
The surest sign of a man with a lack of integrity is how he/she interacts in the faceless environment of internet. Thinking you can say what and how you want without any accountability or consequences tells me everything I want to know about you and it shows your heart in all it’s not-so-beautiful colours.
The moment a swear word exit’s your mouth it shows exactly what is in your heart. Because, what is in the heart, always (!) comes out the mouth…especially when it is in a faceless environment.
You have no idea who I am, what I’ve been through, how hard I’ve worked for what I have, whether I am a man of integrity, my path I walked with God, the challenges I am facing in my life and how many times I was at death’s door and how it changed me. You watch one minute of a video of me, know nothing and then you want to wash out your mouth?
Don’t get me wrong, I have MUCH respect for any person saying anything, as long as he/she shows basic respect and common decency towards me. You can disagree with me 100% but as long as you are prepared to treat me with the same respect that I am treating you with, then we can talk like grown-ups and have a decent conversation.
But, you don’t care what you say, who you say it to and what effect it has on people. All you want to see is that you have made an impact with your nasty comment. An impact of hurting someone…it takes a dark heart my friend. And you know what? The worst of all is, you love that darkness.
If you want to know what I stand for, stop coming to conclusions before you have not read my blog www.gertlouw.com only then do you have an idea of who and what I am. And even then, when you speak to me it must be in a decent manner applying the same level of respect that you want me to apply to you no matter how much you dislike me.
Now, just to annoy you even further. Yes, I will keep on mentioning my relationship with Jesus Christ when I think it is applicable. This is my channel, whether you like it or not, He is and always will be my rock in life. I don’t care for political correctness, I care for what is right and what is wrong. I have many incredible faith experiences and many things to tell you but the fact is you are not interested and neither would you believe anything I say. But that is all fine as long as you respect my beliefs the way I respect yours.
Why is our society in this moral declining abyss? Simple – Jesus Christ is banned out of schools. With no moral anchor to guide us, children are blasted with gruesome violent and horrifically chilling video games. Children can do nearly anything in school as long as it got nothing to do with Jesus Christ who, ironically (!), was the biggest mentor of selflessness, respect and love for your fellow human being and moral guide to ever walk this earth. Children and adults alike have easy and free porn access on internet. Sex shops are around the corner and drugs and booze are easy to come by. Parents are banned from shaping kids into respectful adults through the most effective discipline tool, a good hiding. The result of all of this is just one thing – broken families and a broken world with extreme disrespectful youth growing up into disrespecting and moral-less adults. But the flaps stays over our eyes…we cannot seem to realize what is happening. Now you my friend, are a product of this broken society falling down this dark abyss. Why do you continue to do it? Is this really what you want to be? Do you not yearn to better yourself inside and outside and becoming someone you are proud off?
Don’t get me wrong. I am FAR from perfect! I still struggle with many things in my life…but one thing I do, is to seek a path where I always better myself continuously. I want to look into that mirror and like the inside and outside of that person I see. To be a man of integrity brings much peace in one’s life…that (!) I can promise you.
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I have not invited you to watch my channel or visit my sites. So if you do, it is out of your own accord. You don’t like what you see, please leave and never come back. But stop leaving nasty comments that only show just how dark your heart is. I don’t visit your site and leave nasty comments, show me the same respect. The old saying goes “If you don’t have anything good to say then don’t say anything at all.”
You need to let in some light into that heart my friend. You are in serious need of it…
Just do not expect me to read any of your hateful comments. My time and energy is spent on positive and uplifting things and the last thing I have time for is to entertain your dark heart.
By now most of you know 2017 was a bummer year in my fitness quest. Nearly a month in total in hospital and striken by doctor from gym for just under twelve months…even brisk walking was not permitted.
But alas as off 1st Jan 2018 I am cleared by the doctor to enter the gym again! MAN I was SO glad.
So now, just over a month after I returned to gym, I am reflecting on how far my body has regressed and how far I have already progressed after the 1st month of training.
I’ve done this short documentary type video showing you my shape at 52, then the lowest point off my shape after 12 months of complete training absence and lastly my current shape 1 month after I returned to gym.
I am very positive after the progress of the 1st month, that reaching a level close to my best at age 52 should take not much more than 4 months at most.
The important thing now is to control my eagerness to raise the weight size to quickly. This can very easily result in tendon issues which is NOT what I am looking for now. So absolute wisdom needs to apply.
I am sitting with all this video footage of me flexing muscles and showing body development from the day I start at age 40 to my current age 53. With this video I decided to preserve it in single video format like a documentary style showing each years progress and in some case even going a bit backwards.
Yes, even me sometimes had to take a step backwards. Life is difficult and it might be one of many factors you have to deal with (health, sickness, injury, death in family, financial crisis, family matters. Believe me I know about obstacles and struggles…facing a BIG obstacle now – see video.) BUT…the key is and always will be to continue with persistence on the road of transforming the body. Obstacles there will be, ALWAYS, but it is the winners that work around them and sometimes have to pick up the pieces and persist and push through. Off course it is not easy. Not even close! Life never is… But I for one will fight this good fight and play the game with whatever hand of cards I been dealt with to the absolute BEST of my abilities…so what about you?
Anyway, year by year there was a steady progress. It took 6 years to get to my biggest size (40-46). It was not my most aesthetic look however. Some muscles was over developed and bulky compared to the rest. Sure it looked imposing and many would have been happy with it, but my aim was to have a balanced aesthetic muscled look. So from 46-53 my focus was on slightly smaller size but more aesthetic which is MUCH more difficult.
It did not always felt great to drop the size of certain muscle groups…I LOVE (!) big arms. But alas I had a goal in mind and that was driving me. And when I look in the mirror the smaller arms seemed even better looking than those monster size arms because of the better shape they had. Now in my book, THAT is what it is all about. Size might be the goal for some but size on it’s own will never create a stunning sculpture/body. I am not a artistic person, lol…so this is just about as far as my artistic aspiration will ever go.
This goal I obtained between ages 50 to just after 52. The system I am following (ADVANCED SYSTEM II) helped me on this journey to shape and mold the body.
One thing you must be aware off…great bodies takes time. There is no such thing as a 8 week or 6 week program. All these shortcuts and adverts…all is lies. You cannot build a great body in a matter of months, not even with steroids! (Most of the time good bodies are messed up when steroids are introduced…so be very careful.) Great bodies are build in matter of years, sometimes many years.
In this article I want to take you through the process of how to acquire an extreme dedication to your training and body transformation goals.
As you know MANY set out on this journey, nearly on a yearly basis. But close to 99% fail.
The simple reason for this failure is dedication to training. The smallest stumbling block and the grand hope of transforming the body to superhero looks, fail dead in its tracks.
Now I know what I am talking about. Before the age 40 I had more-than-I-can-count failures in my body transformation goals. For this simple reason – lack of dedication. After 40 I got my act together and things really start changing. How and why did I got my act together? Well that will become evident later on.
For now, let’s discuss the process on how to get this EXTREME DEDICATION to training.
There are two parts.
PART I – Stop with the shallow and superficial aims and reasons to transform the body!
When you decide to transform your body, what are your reasons? Too look sexy, to look nice or better, to attract more girls? Well sorry, but I am gonna burst your bubble here. That will NEVER hold. Superficial reasons carry no weight and with the first obstacle in the road, your dreams is going to come tumbling down.
Now everything change when these reasons are not superficial anymore. The more weight a reason carry the better your chance of pushing through! This must not be about the outside of the body but about the whole you! Change from the inside out. Become a better man, a better father, a better husband and a better friend. Start caring, start having compassion for others, start helping others. A natural outflow of this process to become the best YOU will be to change the outside of the body for the better. You will want to be fit, healthy and muscled because you want to be the best you on all levels. Simply put – the more weight your reason for change carry, the better your chances of success.
PART II – Training time is NOT optional!
Let me put it to you like this. Why do you get up and go to your job everyday? Because it is not optional but a requirement. If you are sick you get a doctor’s certificate. But as soon as this certificate expires you have to get back to work. No matter whether you want to or not. This is just the way it works. Now this exact same rules that hold for your job holds for your training time. It is NOT optional. The only time you miss gym is when you are sick with a doctor’s certificate. If that certificate is expired and you get back to work well, then you get back to gym. There is no but’s or why not’s…the training rules is equal to your job rules.
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I’ve been through this. AT age 40, training was not optional anymore for me. My life depended on it due to serious medical issues. There was no choices. I simply had to train 4-5 days a week. Then success came and it dawn on me why it was different this time. It was because I apply the same dedication level that one apply to your job to my training and diet regime. No “optional” anymore, no excuses. This is the mindset that must happen. Only when part I and part II become part of your aims and mindset, will there be success. Otherwise chances are very high for failure.
Let this sink in. It comes from someone who has failed many times and then one-day it all changed. Learn from this and make the dreams that dance in your head reality!
To all my friends, followers and subscribers…DUDE TALK is a video series where I chat about guy stuff and anything and everything, interacting with my website, Facebook and YouTube friends and followers. So if there is anything (fitness or otherwise) that you want me to chat about, just leave a comment and I will cover it in an upcoming video. If you want your name and photo included in the video (as reference to who posted the topic) just add your pic in the comment or email to me (gertlouwljc@hotmail.com) and you will featured in the video.
When one reaches over 40 and especially over 50 then there are two major concerns that becomes reality for many, constant daily pain and for some the dreaded cancer!
All is not lost. Well for some it is…when one continue on an unhealthy living path (smoking, drinking, and no exercise) well, then the future unfortunately looks a bit bleak.
But just the other day I met a 92 y/o guy, fit, very mobile, with it! So certain things can be done to limit your risks and enhance your quality life.
However even if you do that, constant pain in joints/muscles seems to be part of any person over 40’s life. And so does the possibility of getting cancer.
We use to think it is just by the “throw of a dice” luck that we do not get cancer. But alas, there might just be a way out! Yes you hear right there just might be a very (!) powerful tool in your arsenal that limits your risk for cancer DRASTICALLY.
The same goes for the constant pain. There are 2 weapons in your arsenal to fight this rather effectively.
But first, let’s lay the basic groundwork.
Alpha Lipoic Acid & Potent Multi Vitamin
Two health supplements that form the basis of good health is a good/potent multi vitamin and ALPHA LIPOIC ACID. The best two choices for a potent multi vitamin is OPTIMEN or ANIMAL PAK.
Take the multi vit as directed on the container (must be after meal).
Why the multi vit – well simple you need to ensure that all the basis are covered concerning vitamins and minerals. Just short of one of these can have real bad consequences. This is very important for the older individual. You CANNOT rely on your food to get everything in.
Alpha Lipoic Acid must be taken at 200mg after morning meal and after evening meal.
Why Alpha Lipoic Acid?
Based on evidence from animal and human studies, lipoic acid offers the following essential health benefits:
Reduces oxidative stress in the body via powerful antioxidant activity
Improves several components of the metabolic syndrome—a combination of risk factors that increases one’s risk for diabetes
Reduces blood pressure
Reduces insulin resistance
Improves the lipid profile
Reduces weight
Increases insulin sensitivity
Improves diabetic neuropathy
Protects against cataract formation
Improves visual function in glaucoma
Helps prevents retinal cell death when combined with vitamin E in retinitis pigmentosa
Reduces brain damage after a stroke
Prevents bone loss, possibly through an anti-inflammatory effect
Removes toxic metals from the body
Reduces frequency and intensity of migraines
Improves skin texture
Now on to powerful pain relievers (although Alpha Lipoic Acid also play a role to relief pain).
MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane)
The first one is MSM. Now you might have heard about it. But the truth is, IT DOES WORK. But, not immediately. It is not like popping a pain-pill. It is more like reprogramming your body first before it takes effect.
Some of the most common uses for MSM include treating:
Three uses that MSM has gained the most notoriety for include: acting like an anti-atherosclerotic (preventing the hardening/thickening of arteries), chemo-preventative compound and natural anti-inflammatory. MSM seems to help the body’s natural free radical-scavenging, which means it lowers oxidative stress as the many ailments that come along with it. It’s an effective anti-inflammatory because it blocks the release of pro-inflammatory mediators and down regulates certain harmful signals sent from the immune system that can affect the entire body.
According to the Arthritis Foundation, based on the most reputable studies conducted so far on MSM — such as a 2006 pilot study that analysed the effects of 6,000 milligrams of MSM taken daily by patients with osteoarthritis — it effectively helps improve symptoms of pain and physical function without any major side effects.
That being said, MSM is capable of causing mild side effects for some people, including indigestion, upset stomach or diarrhoea. It’s also not suitable for people taking blood-thinner medications. If you’re pregnant, you’ll want to speak with a doctor before taking it regularly.
Lastly, MSM does NOT start working immediately. It takes up to 3 months for it to start working effectively. For some up to 6 months. So although there is a considerable lead time…it really is worth investing in the long term in using MSM because it IS a powerful pain suppressant with many other health benefits.
Co Enzyme Q10
Now an even more interesting product, Co Enzyme Q10. [Suggested: 150mg after morning and evening meal]
I have written about this wonder supplement in the past and I consider it the “mother of all supplements”. None comes close to it in effectiveness and health boosting ability. And to top it off, it is a significant pain suppressant. To such an extent that many doctors are now at long last starting to subscribe CQ10 to their migraine patients.
Coenzyme Q10 is a mitochondrial energizer that has shown remarkable effects against common heart ailments and neurological disorders. In just the past year, scientists have uncovered specific mechanisms indicating that CoQ10 may have a role in fighting certain cancers. Most surprising, however, are new studies that show how CoQ10 guards against a wide array of common age-related disorders. In this article, we summarize recent discoveries that significantly broaden the clinical utility of CoQ10.
Guarding the Brain After Cardiac Arrest
People who survive cardiac arrest often suffer irreversible brain damage as a result of the disruption of oxygen to the brain. European researchers recently investigated whether combining CoQ10 with mild hypothermia—a technique proven to reduce neuronal damage and increase survival—might enhance the effects of that treatment.
Forty-nine patients who had suffered cardiac arrest and then received cardiopulmonary resuscitation were randomly selected to receive hypothermia (reduction of body temperature) treatment plus CoQ10 or hypothermia plus placebo. The hypothermia treatment involved the patients being placed on a body-surface-cooling mattress.
The patients were then administered either liquid CoQ10 (250 mg followed by 150 mg three times daily for five days) or a placebo through a nasogastric tube. The remarkable findings showed that three-month survival in the CoQ10 group was 68%, compared to only 29% in the placebo group. Coenzyme Q10 thus helped reduce the death rate from cardiac arrest by an astounding 57%. The researchers also found that 36% of patients in the CoQ10 group had a good neurological outcome at three months, versus only 20% in the placebo group.
Preventing the Onset of Migraine
Migraine headaches are a debilitating, all-too-common affliction. Because mitochondrial dysfunction may play a role in migraines by limiting oxygen metabolism, researchers recently explored the use of CoQ10 in preventing these headaches. Published in the February 2005 issue of Neurology, the research describes a placebo-controlled trial of 42 patients in Switzerland.
Patients who had suffered migraines for a year or more, with two to eight attacks per month, were randomly assigned to receive either 100 mg of CoQ10 or placebo, three times daily. At the end of the three-month trial, the CoQ10-treated group had lower attack frequency and fewer headache days and days with nausea than did the placebo group. The mean number of monthly migraine attacks dropped from 4.4 to 3.2 in the CoQ10 group, compared to a negligible decrease from 4.4 to 4.3 in the placebo group.
In this study, supplemental CoQ10 reduced migraine frequency by 27%.
Slowing Early Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration is the most common cause of vision loss in people over 60. With the deterioration of the macula (a tiny cluster of highly specialized cells in the retina) central vision progressively begins to blur. As the disease worsens, central vision loss may increase until it becomes impossible to perform tasks that require detailed vision, such as driving and reading.
In recent years, researchers have focused on how oxidative damage affects age-related macular degeneration. The eye, one of the body’s most metabolically active organs, not only generates an enormous amount of free radicals through normal function, but also incurs additional oxidative damage from ultraviolet radiation and air pollution. In recent trials, the use of antioxidants has been shown to counter age-related macular degeneration. For example, in an 11-center, double-blind clinical trial conducted by the National Eye Institute (a division of the National Institutes of Health), a combination of antioxidants plus zinc slowed macular degeneration progression in people with intermediate or advanced disease by about 25%.
Hungarian scientists are now exploring a metabolic rather than an antioxidant approach to managing macular degeneration. Citing findings that mitochondrial dysfunction might also play a role in the development of the disease, the researchers designed a clinical trial to evaluate intervention in early age-related macular degeneration with a combination of compounds—including CoQ10—that have demonstrated the ability to improve mitochondrial metabolism. The researchers reported results of their double-blind, placebo-controlled trial last year in the journal Opthalmologica. More than 100 patients with early age-related macular degeneration were randomly assigned to receive either two capsules per day containing 200 mg of acetyl-L-carnitine, 780 mg of omega-3 fatty acids, and 20 mg of CoQ10, or capsules containing an equal quantity of soy oil.
At the end of the 12-month treatment period, the researchers found statistically significant improvement in the treatment group as measured by all four parameters of visual function studied. In addition, only one of the 48 patients (2%) in the treatment group showed clinically significant worsening in visual field mean defect (blind spots in the visual field), the primary study endpoint, compared to 9 of 53 patients (17%) in the placebo group. The decrease in drusen—tiny yellow retinal deposits associated with macular degeneration—of the treated eyes was also statistically significant compared to placebo when either the most-affected eyes or the less-affected eyes were considered. In the less-affected eyes, the drusen-covered area decreased by 23% in the treated group, but increased by 13% in the placebo group. These findings suggest that intervention with an appropriate combination of nutrients that affect mitochondrial lipid metabolism may stabilize and even improve visual functions in early age-related macular degeneration.
New Applications in Fighting Cancer
Research on CoQ10 and cancer has focused on two lines of inquiry: CoQ10’s ability to improve immune response and its ability to decrease the cardiotoxicity caused by a common class of anti-cancer chemotherapeutic agents.
Patients with cancer often exhibit low levels of CoQ10,6,7 and researchers have shown that CoQ10 can increase immune response in humans.
Based on these findings, Danish researchers investigated CoQ10’s effects alone and in combination with other nutrients as an adjunctive therapy for breast cancer.
In one case report, the researchers describe three breast cancer patients with metastasized cancer. The women underwent conventional cancer treatment and supplemented with a daily dose of 390 mg of CoQ10. All three women demonstrated tumor regression and decreased incidence of metastasis.
In another study, the same research team investigated 32 high-risk breast cancer patients whose malignancy had spread to the lymph nodes. In addition to conventional therapeutic interventions, this group of patients received a daily combination of nutrients (vitamin C: 2850 mg; vitamin E: 2500 IU; beta-carotene: 32.5 IU; selenium: 387 mcg; and secondary vitamins and minerals), essential fatty acids (1.2 grams of gamma linolenic acid and 3.5 grams of omega-3 fatty acids), and 90 mg of CoQ10. At the end of the 18-month trial, six patients showed apparent partial remission, none of the patients showed signs of additional metastases, and their quality of life improved. None of the patients died during the study period, though four deaths were expected based on the patients’ disease stage. In one of the six patients with partial remission, the dose of CoQ10 in the nutritional protocol was increased to 390 mg. After two months, that patient’s tumor had disappeared completely, as confirmed by a mammogram.
While chemotherapy drugs can be highly effective, their use can also be limited by toxic side effects. This has been noted in the case of anthracyclines, a class of drugs widely used in cancer chemotherapy. These drugs have demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of leukemia, lymphomas, and solid malignancies, and are often used to treat breast cancer, with higher doses yielding greater clinical responses. These higher doses of anthracyclines, however, can produce toxic effects on heart tissue, possibly leading to cardiomyopathy and heart failure that are not responsive to conventional pharmacological interventions. In fact, anthracyclines selectively damage mitochondria in the heart, but not in other organs. Since coenzyme Q10 supports both heart tissue and mitochondria, researchers conducted human trials to determine whether CoQ10 might prevent cardiotoxicity during the administration of anthracyclines.
Two recent review articles addressed CoQ10’s potential as an adjunctive therapy during chemotherapy with anthracyclines. Writing in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, researchers summarized five reviewed studies in which CoQ10 was given along with anthracyclines. They report that in three of the studies that measured heart rhythm, patients who received CoQ10 showed favorable changes suggesting that CoQ10 might have a stabilizing effect on the heart. They also note that supplementation did not interfere with anthracycline treatment, and that no adverse effects were reported in any of the trials. The authors concluded that although coenzyme Q10 demonstrates potential for reducing cardiotoxicity, larger and more rigorous investigations are needed.
Slowing Neurodegenerative Disease Progression
Many investigators have conducted preclinical studies examining how oxidative stress and impaired mitochondrial function may contribute to neuronal cell death, a characteristic of Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and other neurodegenerative diseases. For example, a recent journal article in Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology reported on the effects of the herbicide paraquat on neuronal cell death in the laboratory. The researchers found that this toxic chemical damaged mitochondria and increased free radical production, eventually resulting in the death of neuronal cells. Pretreatment of the cell cultures with CoQ10, however, inhibited both mitochondrial dysfunction and free radical generation. The researchers postulated that coenzyme Q10 may prove useful in preventing and treating neurodegenerative conditions related to environmental toxins.
While published research on the use of CoQ10 in slowing the progression of Alzheimer’s disease has been limited to preclinical studies, investigations of CoQ10 and Parkinson’s disease have moved into clinical trials, including randomized controlled studies. This work has been led by Clifford Shults, MD, professor of neurosciences at the University of California at San Diego School of Medicine. In Parkinson’s disease, brain cells that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine progressively die. Research in animals has shown that CoQ10 can protect the substantia nigra, the area of the brain where these cells reside. Studies by Dr. Shults and others have shown that mitochondrial dysfunction and diminished mitochondrial CoQ10 levels frequently occur in Parkinson’s sufferers.
With funding from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders (a division of the National Institutes of Health), Dr. Shults and his colleagues undertook the first double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter clinical trial of CoQ10 in patients with early untreated Parkinson’s disease. In this phase II, dose-finding study, 80 patients were randomly assigned to receive one of three different CoQ10 doses (300 mg/day, 600 mg/day, or 1200 mg/day) with vitamin E, or a placebo containing vitamin E alone. The patients were followed for 16 months or until the participants required levodopa, a standard drug treatment for managing disease symptoms.
The results, reported in the Archives of Neurology, showed that patients who received the largest dose of CoQ10 (1200 mg/day) had 44% less decline in mental function, movement, and ability to carry out activities of daily living than those who received the placebo.19 Patients who received CoQ10 doses of 300 mg/day and 600 mg/day also showed some slowing in decline compared to the placebo group, but not as much as those who took the highest dose. The authors concluded that CoQ10 was safe and well tolerated at doses up to 1200 mg/day.
A clinical trial has also been undertaken in patients with Huntington’s disease, a neurodegenerative genetic disorder. This trial, conducted by the Huntington Study Group, randomly assigned 347 patients with Huntington’s disease to receive CoQ10 at 600 mg/day, remacemide hydrochloride at 600 mg/day, a combination of both, or placebo. Over the 30-month trial, the CoQ10 treated patients showed a 13% decrease in overall functional decline and beneficial trends in some secondary measures. However, the difference between the CoQ10 group and the other groups did not reach statistical significance.
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METFORMIN
Now on to the last miracle supplement. Metformin [suggested 500mg daily]
This is actually not a supplement but a prescribed medicine for diabetics. However it seems to do much more than just treating diabetics and all of it is good, very good news!
Let me give you the rundown…
[From the US National cancer institute]
“In 1957, the first results from a clinical trial of the diabetes drug metformin in patients were published. Yet, it would take nearly 40 years for the drug to be approved in the United States as a treatment for type 2 diabetes.
Now researchers want to know whether this decades-old drug may have additional uses in another disease—cancer. Based on findings from a number of large epidemiologic studies and extensive laboratory research, metformin is being tested in clinical trials not only as a treatment for cancer, but as a way to prevent it in people at increased risk, including cancer survivors who have a higher risk of a second primary cancer.
Some of the early-phase prevention trials of metformin are enrolling participants who are at increased risk for cancer and who are obese, have elevated glucose or insulin levels, or have other conditions that put them at risk for diabetes.
“With the obesity epidemic, these studies are applicable to a substantial portion of the U.S. population and, increasingly, of the world population,” said Brandy Heckman-Stoddard, PhD, MPH, of NCI’s Division of Cancer Prevention.
Expanding the Data Pool
Much of the human data on metformin and cancer has come from epidemiologic studies of people with diabetes. In many, though not all, of these studies, people with diabetes who were assigned to take metformin had a lower incidence of cancer than those taking other diabetes drugs.
Completed in 2002, the original DPP enrolled more than 3,200 people at increased risk of developing diabetes and randomly assigned them to one of three groups: one group received metformin, one took part in an intensive diet and physical activity program, and one received a placebo. Participants in the metformin arm had a substantially lower risk of developing diabetes than the general population; participants in the exercise and diet regimen fared even better.
With NCI’s involvement, the program’s extension, called the DPP Outcomes Study, will allow investigators to document cancer incidence and death among study participants. Those observations should provide some of the strongest data available to date on metformin’s anticancer effects in people without diabetes, explained Dr. Heckman-Stoddard. The first data on cancer outcomes in study participants, which will be based on 15 years of follow-up, should be available in 2014.
“Once we have that data, there are a host of other questions we can ask,” she said. For example, Dr. Heckman-Stoddard and her colleagues plan to study metformin’s impact on certain blood biomarkers that studies have suggested are associated with cancer risk. They will also study the drug’s mechanism of action—that is, how metformin may work to prevent changes in cells that can lead to cancer.
For Prevention, Small Biomarker-Driven Trials
The smaller prevention trials being conducted are very different from the DPP Outcomes Study. These trials are not designed to determine whether metformin prevents cancer. Prevention trials must generally have a large number of participants and span many years to show whether a drug or some other intervention reduces the risk of cancer.
Instead, these short, 3- to 6-month trials are investigating whether the drug has an effect on specific proteins and/or signaling pathways that have been implicated in cancer development and that laboratory studies have shown are affected by metformin.
At the University of California, Irvine Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, for example, Jason Zell, DO, MPH, is leading an early-phase clinical trial that is testing metformin’s effect on the mTOR signaling pathway in obese people who have previously had precancerous growths removed from their colons.
Numerous studies have implicated the mTOR pathway as an integral hub in cancer development and progression, and laboratory studies have consistently shown that metformin can blunt mTOR signaling.
“The key point of the trial is to get at the mechanisms of action … to see if metformin is behaving in the expected manner” based on the lab findings, Dr. Zell explained.
Numerous early-stage clinical trials are currently under way to investigate metformin’s potential to prevent an array of cancers, including colorectal, prostate, endometrial, and breast cancer.
Dr. Zell and his colleagues chose to study obese patients “because of the interesting side-effect profile of metformin, which can include weight loss,” meaning it may not be suitable for underweight, nondiabetic individuals, he continued.
If this first trial shows that metformin is having the expected effects on mTOR signaling, the next trial would be similar but would measure a clinical outcome, such as whether metformin decreases the number of colorectal polyps that return.
A phase II trial at the University of California, San Diego Moores Cancer Center is testing metformin’s effects on a host of biomarkers in postmenopausal breast cancer survivors who are obese.
Funded by NCI’s Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer (TREC) program, the trial, called Reach for HealthExit Disclaimer, will involve treatment with metformin alone and in combination with an exercise program. The study will examine the effect of 6 months of metformin treatment, with or without exercise, on a host of biomarkers associated with cancer risk. The change in biomarker measurements before and after treatment will be compiled into a score that predicts the risk of dying from breast cancer.
This is all part of the trial’s novel “biomarker bridge” design, the lead investigator, Ruth Patterson, PhD, explained. The biomarkers and the risk score are being derived from an analysis of tissue samples collected as part of an NCI-supported phase III trial called the Women’s Healthy Eating and Living (WHEL) study. This study found that a diet low in fat and high in fruits and vegetables did not reduce the risk of cancer returning in survivors of early-stage breast cancer compared with survivors who maintained their normal diet. Researchers have continued to follow the health of WHEL participants to document their health outcomes, including death from breast cancer.
“The WHEL trial is over, and we have a freezer full of blood samples, and we know participants’ breast cancer recurrences, mortality, and other outcomes,” Dr. Patterson said. “So we’re hooking together a short-term trial with a long-term cohort study by means of blood biomarkers.”
The Dose Is the Question
Most of the cancer clinical trials of metformin use the same doses typically used to treat diabetes. That makes sense, because all of the epidemiologic data suggesting a cancer benefit came from studies that used those doses, said Michael Pollak, MD, of McGill University in Montreal, who has extensively studied metformin and its anticancer potential.
“We already know that those doses are safe, so why not study them?” Dr. Pollak continued. “But then you have to realize that virtually all of the lab studies [of metformin] have been done using drug concentrations that are as much as 100-fold higher than those found in the serum of diabetic patients. So the lab studies do not directly justify the clinical trials that are using conventional antidiabetic doses.”
With the obesity epidemic, these studies are applicable to a substantial portion of the U.S. population and, increasingly, of the world population.
—Dr. Brandy Heckman-Stoddard
Although laboratory studies suggest that larger doses of metformin “deserve study” for cancer treatment, Dr. Pollak noted that “for cancer prevention, we can only consider the hypothesis that the antidiabetic dose, or even lower doses, will be clinically useful.”
Dr. Zell agreed. “In the realm of cancer prevention, where side effects are less acceptable than they are in the realm of cancer treatment, the conventional dose for treating diabetes or something close to it may be the limit.
“I don’t imagine that prevention researchers will be looking to use [significantly larger] doses of metformin,” he continued. “In a healthy population, even a low risk of side effects could be extraordinary when applied to a larger population…. That’s why trials like ours are important. At the end of this 12-week intervention, we’ll have a good idea of whether the standard dose of metformin can affect cancer signaling pathways.”
Early Days
It’s still far too early to tell whether there is any future for metformin as a means of preventing or treating cancer, several researchers said.
Despite the very strong epidemiological evidence, there’s a chance that, even if metformin has some ability to prevent cancer, its efficacy may be limited to just several cancer types, Dr. Pollak noted. For example, metformin is not absorbed very well by the body and is absorbed differently by different tissues, he explained, which could limit how effective it might be against particular cancers.
Although the drug in its current form has certain limitations, some investigators are working on developing more potent derivatives of metformin. At the 2012 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, for example, Italian and U.S. researchers reported that several metformin derivatives they had developed potently blocked the growth of breast cancer cells in the laboratory, including cell lines of triple-negative breast cancer, and caused the cells to die.
To be used for cancer prevention, any metformin derivative would have to be safe, with few side effects, Dr. Heckman-Stoddard stressed. As for the original metformin formulation, she added, current trials should help to map the way forward for its use in prevention.
“It’s important that we identify the right populations in which this is most likely to be an effective agent,” said Dr. Heckman-Stoddard. “We need to look at the evidence from all of these early-phase trials as a whole,” she continued, including examining the population groups exhibiting the strongest suggestions of efficacy “so we can design efficient phase III trials.”
Examples of Clinical Trials Testing Metformin for Cancer Prevention
WANT A HOLISTIC TRANSFORMATION SYSTEM FULLY CUSTOMIZED? The program I am following for the past 6 years (age 46 to 52), available now fully customised on all levels. Every little secret, every hard-earned practical fact, every scientific study that actually support the (very) few supplements between all the thousand ridiculous advertisement claims have been filtered en incorporated into one system that MAKES A DIFFERENCE click here:
Metformin has been proven to be very safe even for non-diabetics. But since it is a prescription drug you will have to twist your doctor’s finger to get a prescription. Ask him to look at the anti-cancer and weight-loss properties of Metformin…this might change his mind.
So here you have it – 5 powerfull tools in your arsenal for good health, anti pain and anti cancer. As the Vulcan say “Life long and prosper!”
Here is my latest video I just finished. It discuss the best FREE body transformation system out there available. Those of you that dreamed of that new body…well, now is your chance! MAKE THIS HAPPEN!
This video will take you step by step through the 4 major detailed aspects that must be in place:
Quite a few guys asked me what was the biggest impact on my life after I achieved this muscled physique and healthy living success.
Some things changed, like suddenly more people are friendly with you, people have more respect when talking to you and yes, sure…looks like wife loves me more!
But the biggest problem that came with the whole deal revolves around sex, lust and temptation. I had many, many(!) guys, girls, and couples (married and otherwise) that offered me in no uncertain terms…sex. Yes, you heard right, even married couples. And some of these people are incredibly attractive!
Now, I am no-one special. I am certain that any muscle guy or fitness girl, having a high internet visibility, have this problem to contend with. The people making the offers don’t care about what you stand for. That is irrelevant to them.
I’ve been offered gifts, large sums of money and even people that wanted to travel from another continent just to have sex…
Now, believe me I am no “Amish” when it comes to sex. I LOVE sex even some kinky stuff! BUT I have a family…a loving, 100% loyal, wife and a son looking up to me as the leader of the family showing him how a man and a father must live. When I am 80 y/o, I still want to too be able to lovingly look into my wife’s eyes and give her a passionate kiss without having to feel guilty about cheating her and living a life devoid of integrity.
Sure the world reckons what others don’t know won’t hurt or harm them and thus they just do whatever pleases them. Me, on the other hand is not using the world as my moral compass but my moral compass is Jesus Christ. Every evening I have to face God and He gives me my moral guidance.
For me ignoring my rules guiding my integrity is a path of self-destruction. I lose all love for myself and literally start to hate myself. This path always leads to severe depressive states and can easily result in suicide. Believe me I know what I am talking about, I’ve been there. Long ago this was my life and it was a worthless life. After nearly dying at 40 my appreciation and love for life changed me.
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It is not about what the other person do not know…it is about what I know! Not having self-respect is a sickness of our time…and the resultant symptom is free sex around every corner leading a life devoid of integrity.
Am I immune, to these temptations? Certainly not. EVEN Adam and Eve stumbled with forbidden fruit.
If I ever have one prayer request for my fellow Christians, this will be it. Pray that I will be strengthened to keep leading a life of integrity.
Sometimes this can become so bad that I wondered if it was at all worth it. But then I will get this email from someone I have never met and do not know…about how my life and testimonies literally saved him from a path of destruction and how he turn his/her life around…all because of me. And you know what? This makes it a 1000 times worth over. There is no more incredible feeling when someone tells you, because of you, what you stand for and what you said, because of your life and integrity…I was saved!
Neither your age, nor your health should ever (!) stand in your way.
Now, most of you know by now that 12 years ago I nearly died and doctors did not give me any good news. But with faith I moved forward and apply healthy living on all levels and also did some house cleaning and moving closer to God ( I am a follower of Jesus Christ).
Obviously it was a long and hard road and the body took long to respond to this healthy living but the wheel did turn and it is keeping on turning as a result.
Now, I am not naïve in thinking everyone with serious health issues can and will turn around like I did, but what I do believe is that with faith in God and by living very healthy, one CAN make a huge difference. Obviously you need your doctor’s approval to embark on such a journey.
But, let me share with you the core of my healthy living
My training program is as follows:
Mondays – Chest, Biceps and abs
Tuesdays – Shoulders, Traps and calves
Wednesdays – rest
Thursdays – Back, triceps and abs
Fridays – Legs, upper pecs and calves
Saturdays & Sundays – rest
My supplement regime
Health supplements:
ALA (Alpha Lipoic Acid)
CQ10 (Co Enzyme Q10)
Omega 3+6
Strong Multi Vitamin
Slow release Vit C
Muscle building supplements:
Whey protein powder
L-Glutamine
BCAA
How do I structure my training?
I do a 3-months Cutting phase with a very specific cutting phase diet and training with lighter weights at a higher rep range followed by 1 week rest and then a 3-month building phase with a very specific building phase diet and training with heavier weights to absolute muscle failure at lower reps (about 8 reps per set) followed by 1 week rest and the repeat.
This allow me to build muscle but also to recover the strained tendons and joints.
About my diets
I make use of one of the top fitness nutritionists in the field (BERNADETTE BEYER) to work out my diets for each phase according to my bodytype and goals. This is the crucial part of your success and without a very focussed diet there will be no success.
My blog contains a LOT of info for free that can help you through all these processes.
But for those interested, I also offer my exact training/supplem and diet system via the ADVANCED SYSTEM II (option E). The same nutritionist I use will also work out your diet solution and I myself attend to working out your training and supplement attack based. If you want to signup, just choose option E via the following link: https://gertlouw.com/contact-me
Now this is probably what everyone wants to hear – lol! BUT, the truth is, there are methods to cheat and still get to the top!
Life is not meant to be without a dessert once on a while…and I am talking Baked Chocolate Fondant with oozing real sweet chocolate out if it’s center with ice cream (real ! ice cream) liberally used. The same goes for the odd glass of wine/whiskey or beer or whatever blows your skirt up, even a chocolate!
A certain balance needs to be applied to stay sane with anything in life. I’ve just done a 3 weeks severe cutting diet, sticking 100% to it…and, it’s was hell! The more you are going to disallow yourself a treat once in a while, the bigger the chance that your diet will fail completely in the end. You would just say…”I had enough”. And you know what? I have big compassion for that…so let’s have a look here how (!) you can cheat regularly without crashing your diet and keep yourself sane and focused to stick 98% to your diet.
Sundays to Fridays – sorry that (!) is where you stick 100% to your diet.
Get yourself some sugarless, carb less, fat free sweets. Do some searching and buy those that have as little calories as possible…like below 10! Then during the Sunday to Friday period…pop a few (3-4) of those during the day when you feel the urge to treat yourself a bit. Apart from that – nothing else.
The key is always to eat all your regular meals and drink all your water (2L-4L)…THAT is what keeps you full and keep the urges to eat wrong away.
Obviously, if you are at your target body fat then some different rules apply. Then you are allowed 2 -3 cheats evenly spaced out during the week. But for this documents purpose, let’s assume we are dealing with all those that are still far from the target body fat levels.
Your cheat should be left for a weekend day…when you are less stressed, more relaxed and doing something you like. This cheat will go to great lengths to make you not feeling deprived of some great things and food in life. Even if you don’t feel like a cheat, maybe it is a good idea…simply to help you stay balanced and not feeling deprived later on in the week.
Now, “HOW?” should you cheat?
There can only be one cheat and that cheat can only be once per day per week on just 1 day of the week!
First you eat the diet as normal for that day as specified.
Let’s look at the next cheat scenario’s:
1. Ice Cream cheat / Soft drink / dessert cheat / potato crisps – once anytime during day. Then for 2 of your meals for the day cut out carbs completely. One small meals carbs and one larger meals carbs.
2. Chocolate cheat 150g – anytime during day. The same as above: For 2 of your meals for the day cut out carbs completely. One small meals carbs and one larger meals carbs.
3. Alcohol cheat (500ml equivalent wine) – anytime during day. Usually late afternoon or evening you will use this cheat. So for the evening meal cut out carbs completely and ONLY clean fatless meat and salad…no sauces, no carbs, nothing else! And definitely no dessert. If you want dessert, then no wine! One or the other… [Note: be very careful with alcohol. It is the key reason why men, especially older men, struggle to loose fat around the tummy and have a bloated look to the tummy. Best is to cut alcohol COMPLETELY out and have other types of cheats.]
Remember that with any of the above cheats it will set you back 24 to 48 hours before your body reverted to the level before you cheated and only then will it be able to start losing fat again. So even though you have cheated it is STILL very much possible to loose fat for the week, but only within above rules.
I strongly believe that the only winning approach is a balanced approach. That keeps you focused and you feel like “life” is not deprived of you. Part of this balance is to cheat on a weekly basis with your diet by applying above wisdom!
Wish you all happy dieting and a great training week!
Gert Louw
In all my coaching systems and many articles on my site, I regularly refer to the process of transforming into a wow physique by “climbing a ladder step by step”.
Here I want to explain as to WHAT exactly I mean by that.
Now, many people think they are starting to climb the ladder and start transforming, and they actually start doing rather great, but then stuff starts happening…things like: getting sick regularly, tendon/joint injury or other serious injury or they lose hope because they just cannot put on muscle no matter how hard they train and some just cannot lose fat no matter how hard they diet.
This is when the train stops and they get off the ladder.
Not because it was not possible but because they LACK knowledge.
KNOWLEDGE in terms off:
You CANNOT lose fat if the calories are too low…then your body enters famine mode and you WILL lose all your hard earned muscle first before it uses the fat – no matter how HARD you train! There is a sweet spot with calories where the body use fat for energy and keep muscles safe. You need to find it. (In my SYSTEMS I and II this is covered).
You CANNOT build muscle if: caloric intake too low, body fat too low or you do too much cardio!
You WILL get sick regularly if you continue pounding your body week after week, month after month, in the wrong fashion and you do not use certain basic health supporting supplements.
You WILL run into serious tendon and joint issues if you do not alternate every 3 months between BUILDING and CUTTING phases to allow healing and strengthening.
All of these are covered in detail in my COACHING SYSTEMS (https://gertlouw.com/contact-me), but the bottom line which brings all these together are a continuous alternating between a 3 month CUTTING PHASE and a 3 monthly BUILDING phase.
Each Phase has its own specific training methodology and specific type diet.
The two phases are vastly different and by continuously alternating between them, you allow your body every 3 months to go through a process off:
Loosing max fat while protecting muscles in Cutting Phase.
Building max muscle at slightly higher body fat levels in the Building Phase.
Allowing your body to be fed correctly for your exact goal and training methodology for each phase.
Allowing tendons and joints to strengthen and recover regularly in Cutting Phase.
Allowing the body a balanced and healthy approach preventing sickness and injury by not overtraining and stressing the body and immune system.
These 2 phases hold the KEY to climbing the ladder. One step on the ladder = 1 BP (Building phase) + 1 CP (Cutting Phase). After each step you will be able to see a significant difference in shape and size. THIS is how you climb up the ladder.
Look at the following graph showing the BODY FAT variation during the phases
This is what your body fat will do when sticking to my SYSTEM I or II training that incorporates these principles (BP = Building Phase, CP = Cutting Phase):
Every BP1 + CP1 covers a 6 month period. At the end of each of the cutting phases your body fat is lower and lower till typically after a 3 year period you reach crazy levels like 5% body fat.
Let’s look what your muscle size will do when alternating between the phases:
At the end of each of the cutting phases your body weight is higher than after the previous cutting phase. That COUPLED with the fact that the body fat is lower after each Cutting Phase compared to the previous cutting phase makes a HUGE difference on how the body looks and the amount of lean mass you are carrying.
THIS (!) is how you climb the ladder…not after one cutting phase or one building phase but after various of these phases. Stopping with the process simply mean you stop climbing the ladder.
Simply put – After each Building Phase your muscle weight is higher at lower body fat levels, and during the Cutting Phase you show your results, keeping that muscles safe and dropping the body fat on each Cutting Phase lower and lower than in the previous Cutting Phases until after a few years you look back and say…”WOW!”
Nearly all of us have this dream to be the best we can be. Too have a great, ripped, muscled physique that impresses and exudes health, wealth and happiness. We seemed to have been programmed with this urge and I believe that to be true…we are created in the image of God.
But back to reality, life is difficult. Work, school, studying, marriage, family, kids, meetings and a rat race trying to stay ahead and on top.
I have a blueprint transformation system developed to create the environment for growth and fat loss…have a look here: https://gertlouw.com/my-transformation-secrets/
We easily make decisions at the beginning of a new year or after being inspired by someone to reach for that dream body we so much want.
And sure, that is the first and most important step each of us have to take on the road to success BUT, and this is a very big BUT, 99% of those taking this first step have not acquired and mastered the mindset that needs to be in place to push through to reach goal and beyond.
Let’s look at important aspects of this mindset that must be in place before the journey starts:
IT WILL HURT
Do not think for one moment reaching a dream body is without pain. LIFE IS PAIN! You will never ever be in a situation where you will not experience some form of physical or emotional/other pain. Being alive, means that you WILL experience pain. The whole idea is to minimize, control and use this pain to your advantage. To reach your dream physique you will be working out intensely. This will cause muscle pain and resultant muscle growth. Learn to LOVE this pain…this is a signal that you are stimulating your body for growth. There might be injury on your path. This is part of any sport environment. Learn to work around it and do NOT let it derail your efforts. For example: When you have a knee injury, nothing stops you from concentrating on the upper body workouts until it is healed. Even with back injuries under guidance you can still workout safely.
IT WILL TAKE TIME
The Hollywood and Western Culture has programmed us to want immediate results and satisfaction. Get that out of your mind very quickly. That is the single biggest reason why people do not push through. We want it and we want it now and if it does not happen within a month or two then why bother. I got one thing to tell you – “NOTHING, BUT NOTHING IN LIFE THAT IS REALLY WORTH IT COMES EASY.” Accept that. A dream body is not designed in months , not even in years for some. It took me 11 years to get to the best shape of my life. Month after month there are small differences and they add up to significant differences on yearly basis and wow differences every few years. You cannot get to the top of a ladder without climbing the steps…only by going up step by step do you get to the top. Sure there are shortcuts people try to take but nothing this side of anabolic steroids can and ever will produce magic results (even with anabolics it takes time and a very focused approach and is NOT an overnight process!). Do NOT believe marketing advertising of supplements. 99% of what is printed and claimed is complete and utter lies.
IT WILL REQUIRE DEDICATION
There is no easy way to say this…You will need to be at gym 4-5 days a week, you will need to motivate yourself for intense workouts (and learn to love it!), you will need to make extreme effort with your diet preparing the food the day before, you will need to have 100% dedication to your supplement regime. This is what it will take.
YOU WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFESTYLE
Right now you are probably hanging out with your mates every evening. In future you will have to cut social time to the bare minimum. Your time and focus will now be in a new environment. You need to brace yourself for a total lifestyle change – friends, socializing, eating habits, time spend and more.
Having family requirements make it more challenging but not impossible. In fact your life partner and kids will see the changes and your dedication and that will instill in them even greater respect for you. You will lead now by example and what you are showing them is the best possible example a father can show to his children…that if you want something badly in life, you have to put in the effort and dedication to get there, you will show them everything worth something in life comes with great effort and dedication.
Many people also ask me how I bring my faith in Jesus and my fitness lifestyle together. They see a good looking shredded, muscled guy and struggle to bring faith and this lifestyle in the same environment. I find it very easy and actually find that my dedication to the fitness lifestyle brings me closer to God because it teaches me dedication and discipline. For me Jesus Christ is in the center of everything I do. I never cut Him out of anything and I am not shy to give Him the credit for what I’ve reached. Even before I sometimes do a heavy set…I will quickly close my eyes for strength from my Lord. I don’t care what people say or think around me…I am not doing this for them…I am doing this for me.
THERE WILL BE TEMPTATION
Be under no misconception…there will be many reasons for giving up. This is the exact reason why so few reach success. You will be hungry, you will miss out on drink dates with friends, you might even have to change friends, your body will ache and pain and there will be days that you feel drained and without focus. Those are the days that you just have to PUSH THROUGH and JUST DO IT. Just get yourself to gym and just do what you need to do. Steer clear from foods that tempt you. Do NOT keep those foods in your house. Temptation is what will separate the men from the boys.
Never use work-pressure or deadlines as an excuse. You HAVE to find your solutions around that. If it means early morning or late evening training, so be it. NEVER use the excuse “but I cannot stick to the meals because I do not have time at work to eat.” It takes you 2 min to pour water in a shaker, put in the protein powder and shake and drink it…2 minutes, nothing more!
This especially is one of the key areas where I found my faith helps me a lot to stay focused.
The above is just some of the key areas for the right mindset, but I believe these are the most important.
Master them and you WILL reach success.
Success is within each of us but so is failure as well.
You have been given the ability to reach to the stars and be everything God ever meant you to be…DO NOT LET THIS WONDERFULL GIFT PASS YOU BY.
Although even some young bodybuilders struggle with weak wrists it is most frequently the domain of the over 40 lifter.
The wrist simply do not have the power and ability to support the weight being lifted anymore. This could become a huge problem for a person in quest for size, because the key ingredient for growth is through intense, heavy weight lifting regularly to the point of failure.
I am one such person that struggles with weak wrists. I simply cannot hold the size weight required to stimulate enough growth. But I am definitely not going to call it game over…I made plans. And it is MUCH easier than most people think.
The following video is rather crucial to watch to fully understand exactly what and how I am doing it.
You must get a wrist supporting rubber grabbing “glove”, like the one showed in the video.
To make sure that the part that folds over the wrist is secure and do not come loose while engaged in heavy lifting, duck tape must be used as per instruction in the video. (Tape it on both wrists securing the part that folds over.)
With every (!) weight you lift (dumbbells & barbels, pullups, seated rows for back and especially shrugs) the rubber part of the glove must be wrapped around the weight where your hand would go and then your hand must go over the rubber part in the reverse position (see video for exact method).
This would alleviate the pressure on the wrist easily by up to 80%.
When performing bench presses use the overhand position with the thumb in the same direction as all the other fingers. Let the weight of the bar rests on the lower part of just the palm of your hand so that no pressure is applied on the wrist. Do not clasp the thumb the other way around the bar. This put undue pressure on the wrist.
The above sounds simple, but I guarantee you that it will enhance your ability GREATLY to lift serious weights again without hurting the wrists and put you straight back into growth territory.
This is the way I’ve been lifting for the last 5 years and now at close to 52 I am in the best shape of my life.
Hope this help guys…be wise and GROW!
Those interested in the online transformation coaching I provide – check here: https://gertlouw.com/contact-me/
Walking by faith – Everyone knows by now there are a deeper side to me and a life altering back story.
But I have never really told my story about my walk in faith.
I am opening my heart here and I know there are risks…because the world is not always a good place to lay your heart bare. But this is the time to do it…my walk in faith has brought me to this point where I feel compelled to share.
So those that want to know about a story of pain, hope, miracles and LIFE, read on.
As many of you know, 11 years ago (at age 40) I was lying on my “deathbed” in hospital. At one point no blood pressure and heartbeat and ready to die. A brutal attack and mutilation left me with a broken soul and the will to live has left me, my heart was filled with darkness and pain which I could not carry anymore.
Me 2 months after hospital:
Then the unexpected happened. While I was lying in my hospital bed, weak and not expecting anything but death, I heard a voice, God’s voice. The voice was clear…”Gert, I am offering you life…I have a plan for you. You must choose…”
I cannot put in words that moment…I experienced an incredible beauty, softness, kindness, pureness, holiness, love and I saw LIFE…and in that moment my life changed. I was heartbroken, I was weak and I spend a lot of time in conversation with God over the next few days lying in my bed. I was soooo close to choosing death…but this unexpected experience showed me LIFE and I made my choice.
Sure, before this I knew about God and I knew the Bible. But this changed my world. Suddenly God was not just in a book anymore but He was more real to me than this world around me. And for just that brief moment I felt the touch of God…and I was utterly overwhelmed and unprepared.
Two weeks in hospital and I was strong enough to leave. Prognosis not good…some doctors gave me a couple of years. But it was not in their hands, I chose life and God was in control.
I was a changed man…but, the pain and darkness in my heart of what happened was not over. The weakness I have, is that I put a lid on things and push it deep down, trying to bury it…never really dealing with it.
My walk in faith deepened over the next years.
Now at 51 I am a living miracle of God. The body is still broken. Kidneys functioning at 50%, struggling with my liver, and that is just the tip of the iceberg with my serious health problems. But that is insignificant for God…look at me…with my severe health issues and being expected to be long dead by now, God has turned this around to the extend that I am looking the healthiest and fittest I ever did in my life. For Him, NOTHING is impossible. He is in control, not the doctors, not me, not medical science.
Me, today…4 months away from 52:
Now this all sound incredible and it is, but my world was about to be rocked again. God knew that the pain and darkness that I am trying to bury needs to be addressed. Every now and then an event triggers the lid from coming off slightly and the pain and darkness boils over. And recently the Holy Spirit kicked off that lid for good. All that pain and darkness surfaced and there was no way I could put back the lid on again. The Holy Spirit do not mess around…that lid was gone!
I struggled to breath, it felt like my heart was tearing in two…I pleaded with the Holy Spirit to please ask God to come and take my life…I could not bear the pain, it was overwhelming. My power to push it down was gone.
But let me give you a glimpse into how incredible God works.
The Holy Spirit literally forced me to walk into a church I do not know the next day, and walk up to the first friendly face I see and tell him I need someone to pray with me, now (!) and intercede on my behalf before God. Now anyone that knows me, will realize this is the worst thing anybody can ask me to do. I am a total introvert, sitting always quietly in the corner doing my own thing and NEVER EVER just walk up to people I don’t know, let alone in an environment total foreign to me. This was going against everything I am.
But instead of doing this, I wanted to die, because this darkness and pain was so intense and overwhelming that again I was at this crossroad point in my life where I had to choose between life and death. I had a young son who I adore and a beautiful loving wife and if it was not for them chances was I was going to choose the easy road out. I was breaking down in tears continuously…and I am NOT an emotional person!
So I DID IT! I just did it in total obedience. I went to the church the Holy Spirit indicated to me, my wife and son by my side. I walked up to the first friendly face I saw and I told him what the Holy Spirit instructed me to do. He smiled and said I must go and sit, someone will come to me. A few moments later a guy, my age, walked up to me and touch my shoulder and smile. We went to a quiet corner outside and I told him my story, laying my heart bare, told him of my pain and the way the Holy Spirit is working with me now. We bend down and started praying, he laid me before God…during this moment the Holy Spirit told me that because of my obedience, He will now plea my case before God and lay my pain of the darkest corners of my heart before God. I could hear it, I could literally hear the murmurings, not words, but I could hear everything. I felt the touch of God as I did in my hospital bed and broke down in tears by grace I do not deserve. God once again began the 2nd miracle in my life, healing my pain in my heart.
The following week was extremely emotional for me as the Holy Spirit carried me through this process of cutting the pain in my heart out, piece by piece.
I thought my walk was close with God previously, but had no idea how intense it was about to become.
This God I bow down too, has become more real than anything else in this world. I am totally unprepared for how amazing and incredible His love, His holiness, His power and His kindness is.
So many people I talk to over the internet ask me “Why do God, if He is a good God, allow this pain and suffering in this world to continue?”
The world is a broken place. We have made our choices to abandon God and with it comes pain and suffering. God is the ultimate gentleman…He NEVER force His will on anyone. Bad things happen to even good people everyday…and you know what, it strengthens you to become a stronger person reaching greater heights. Look what happened to me…through it God strengthened me to reach heights I thought never possible in my life and I am touching many lives out there and helping people. I am a hard nut to crack and God knows it. He had plans for me…but left to my own devices that plan would never come into play. He allowed things to happened to me and come over my path. Bad things…like Job, but like God is, He turned everything around into blessings beyond believe. I still had to make the choices myself…but God gentlemanly lead me in the direction…
God wants so much the best for us, but when we abandon Him we are left alone in this broken world. The heart of God is such that He allowed that, which was most precious to Him, to be put through pain and mutilation and to die on a cross for us, just so that me and you would have direct access to God and the Holy Spirit.
My sins in this broken world prevents me from having a direct link with God, because before God nothing that has any sin or darkness can stand and live, nothing. God is pure and holy. Only through the sacrifice of Jesus, who was blameless, could He die in my place and through that allow me to talk to God and be saved. It had to be someone blameless, he had to had no sin because that is the only way He could die for ours.
God could have sent armies of angels to rescue Jesus, but this shows God’s heart…unmeasurable kindness and compassion. He did not have to do this for us…He is the Almighty God, rescuing us just by grace…which we do not deserve.
Now, many devoted believers don’t like it when they hear of someone like me who had such incredible experiences with God, the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ (I had Christ holding His hand on my shoulder at one of my toughest moments in prayer and more…)
Why me, what makes me special?
Remember Maria?…remember that between all the disciples of Jesus, SHE was the one that quietly bent down with her tears falling on Jesus feet and rubbed very expensive oil/perfume over His feet, no words, just an act of utter compassion. His disciples were not impressed about the logic that such expensive perfume was wasted. But she had a relationship with God on another level, why?…because of the AMOUNT of grace she required to be saved. Be happy and joyful if you required little grace to follow God, then you are blessed indeed. People like me (and Maria) carried so much pain and darkness in our hearts that the grace we require, is massive. This amount of grace changes you on every level and your relationship with God, is extremely intense.
Last week on one of the biggest radio stations in Cape Town, they aired this young woman who had a vision where Jesus Christ appeared to her and told her: “Go and tell the world, I have finished preparing all your places in heaven. I am coming to fetch you. The time is up.”
The Holy Spirit confirmed this in my heart…
Now, I know God said, no one knows the date and time, but I am making sure me and my family is ready…I cannot wait to join my Lord and Saviour!
I pray this article means something to you…it comes from deep within my soul.
After about 3 weeks use the body reach a saturation point and then the real pain relieving properties kicks in. If you can get past the mind barrier of taking something that is closely drug related then this could have a drastic positive pain relief impact. And believe me it is not so easy getting past this “mind barrier” for us older folks…but it can be done…I took the plunge. The end result for me – less pain and drastic better sleeping at night. Also drastically lower blood pressure. [I take 1 drop morning, 1 drop afternoon and 5 drops before bed]. Cannabis oil (CBD/THD) has some very interesting medical applications. Some of the claims the cannabis groupies make is not backed up at all by science but some actually are, especially with the latest studies. I think this warrant a future article to give some more insight into this new emerging product (emerging…well at least in the medical mainstream community that is!).
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